Love it or hate it, email remains to be one of the primary means of communication. Despite its age, ubiquity, and versatility, most business owners assume that it is one of those things that doesn’t work. Maybe that’s even you and your practice.
Email is actually a great option for marketing and promoting your practice. Here are 6 reasons why healthcare businesses and providers should do email marketing.
Create a stronger relationship with patients
According to a study that was conducted by researchers from Pew Internet, 80% of internet users have searched for a health-related topic online.
You know that there is a demand for healthcare content. People have already given you permission to email them. Now, they expect you to give them something in return.
Email is a great place to share relevant and timely health information. You can share some tips on how to avoid flu at work or how to keep kids safe while playing in the snow.
Your subscribers are already looking for these types of information online. By sending relevant and well-crafted healthcare content regularly, they’ll see that you care about their health and well-being. The more value you provide to your subscribers, the more they’ll look forward to hearing from you. When that happens, you’ll have a better chance of earning their trust and loyalty.
Personalized communication
People love it when businesses and treats them as an individual. Email marketing is one of the easiest and most effective ways to show your patients and subscribers that you value and care about them. It allows you to keep in touch with your audience on a regular basis. It can be as simple as “Thank you for subscribing”, a sincere “Happy Birthday” or some healthcare tips.
Personalized emails are more likely to be opened and read. Make sure that you address the recipient by their name. It is also a good idea to use a person’s name in the “from” field. People are more likely to trust and relate to an email that comes from a person as opposed to a business.
Cost-effective
There are a number of channels you can use to market your practice online. But email remains among the simplest, most cost-effective ways for you to market yourself and your practice. In fact, sending a monthly newsletter to your email list could cost you nothing more than your time. The best part? It lets you send your message around the world in seconds.
Extensive reach
With the rise of social media, many businesses have abandoned email marketing, and we’re not surprised.
There are 4.3 billion internet users across the globe. Approximately 80% of them have social media accounts. That’s huge! But here’s the thing. The average click-through rate for a Facebook post is between 0.5 and 2%. If you have 1,000 followers, that means only 5-20 of them will see your posts.
Contrary to popular misconception, email marketing has great delivery and conversion rate. Almost everyone has an email, and they check it every now and then – while eating, while working or while waiting for the bus to arrive.
If you want to reach your target audience, you can do so through email. While not everyone will click and read the email, they are 80% more likely to do so than a Facebook post they might not even see.
Preferred method of communication
Email is far less obtrusive than a phone call or in-person visit. Plus, it is perceived as a more private outlet than social media. For this reason, many people prefer to communicate via email when it comes to their healthcare and medical needs.
A decade ago, people would use email to communicate with their family and friends. But a lot of that has shifted to social media, video chat, and texting. Email, on the other hand, is often reserved for work or business transactions, especially when dealing with very sensitive information.
Target select audience
We all know that the content is what makes an email great. But there is no point in sending out well-crafted, high-quality content if they are directed to the wrong audience.
Email marketing gives you the freedom to organize your contacts into segments. That means you can communicate with them based on their age, location, interest, etc. This way, you can easily customize your message for the different audiences you communicate with.
If you’re an emergency clinic, age would be an important demographic. For instance, you can send content that is centered on slips and falls to older adults on your list. For young adults, it could be about sports-related injuries.
By segmenting your list by age group, you can tailor the content of your email to suit the specific health interest and current situation of the recipient. When relevant content reaches the right audience, you’ll stay on top of mind with patients, establish a strong relationship, and build lifelong trust.